Lawsuit Against Foxconn Dropped

The lawsuit filed last month against Foxconn, Racine County and the Village of Mount Pleasant for failing to deliver on its promises has been dismissed by the plaintiffs.

Daniel Hintz and Hintz Real Estate Development filed the suit alleging the Taiwanese tech company and the municipalities had breached their contract. Racine County and Mount Pleasant have spent millions of dollars on upfront investments, including infrastructure and land acquisition for the project since 2017.

Hintz dismissed the case Friday.

“After filing the lawsuit, plaintiffs came into information — previously unknown to them that convinced them that now was not the right time to interject — (and) that assistance, that discussions were occurring that could benefit the village and the county, and that the lawsuit at this time might be counter-productive,” said Stuart Chanen, an attorney for Hintz. “The dismissal was without prejudice, so plaintiffs have preserved their right and ability to refile if progress is not achieved.”

In a statement, Foxconn representatives said they could not comment on current or past legal matters.

“Foxconn continues to fulfill its financial obligations under the local development agreement and is proud to be the largest taxpayer in the Village of Mount Pleasant and Racine County,” the statement says.

Racine County and the Village of Mount Pleasant released a statement saying they’re pleased this issue was quickly resolved and both governments look forward to “continued progress and partnership on the Wisconn Valley Science and Technology Park.”

Foxconn originally proposed a “Gen 10.5” facility that would manufacture the latest high-tech LCD monitors in Mount Pleasant. In return, the state’s GOP leaders signed a $3 billion tax incentives deal based on job creation.

At the local and regional levels, Mount Pleasant and Racine County created a tax-increment financing district in 2017 to pay for a $764 million investment to support the Foxconn project. The public investment was later increased to $911 million.

The state has denied Foxconn any consideration of tax credits because there’s no activity in Mount Pleasant resembling any of the detailed production included in the contract with the state.

Foxconn representatives say they’re optimistic an amendment to the original contract with the state is “within reach.”

“In response to market conditions that were unforeseeable three years ago, Foxconn formally came to the table with WEDC (Wisconsin Economic Development Corp.) in August 2020 with a desire to lower taxpayer liability in exchange for flexibility that incentivizes future business development and job creation in Wisconsin,” Foxconn said in a Feb. 24 statement to WPR.

Breach Of Contract Lawsuit Against Foxconn Dismissed was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.